Rear rotor condition

[Jeff]

Just "cooked" my rear rotor on my 78 XS1100E after caliper started dragging. It locked up hard enough to kill the engine and had the rotor glowing a nice cherry red. Needless to say, the rear pads are toast and there is a noticable lip on the inside outer edge of the rotor. The outer pad still has the wear notch showing but it is worn past on the inner one. Will i need to machine or replace the rotor or can I still use it until I can afford to do the work? When I cracked the bleeder to relieve pressure, all I got was vapor and a little sputter of fluid. The pedal had been moved upwards a bit to clear the Jardine slipon so I assume it will need adjustment to relieve the drag, plus i plan to teardown and clean the caliper and rear m/c.

[DiverRay]

I would try to find a "new" rotor. DO NOT try to have it turned. If needed, you can run the old one for a little while, but keep in mind, you will once again need new pads when you replace the rotor.
Mikesxs has new rotors that will work, as the '78 and '79 standards use the same rotors front and rear, and some of the 650's also used the same rotors. Andreasweis also has some used parts, just not sure if he has a rotor left.
If things got that hot, you WILL need a rebuild kit, and a lot of time, for the calipers and master cylinder. Be sure to clean the master VERY WELL, as the cause of the problem was probably old lines, and bits of rubber pluging the "splooge hole".
Ray

[Geezer]

Another thing that causes this is that there isn't enough free play on the rear break peddle.

Adjust the actuator rod to give at least 3/4" free peddle movement before the rod touches the piston in the master cylinder.

Geezer